Secret Revealed
by God of Fire
Summary: *complete* Their marriage is a secret, but can Severus be persuaded to change his views on the situation before he is made to sleep on the couch?


a/n: just a one-shot fic that i wrote when i got bored of things in my house. in this first few paragraphs severus says 'do you really?' if you think of ozzy kissing sharon at his birthday dinner toward the end of the first season of the osbournes, it'll be easier to see. but only if you know what i'm talking about will you get it. just thought that i'd add that little info in.  
  
  
  
"Why must the staff always attend these wretched events," Severus said menacingly as he straightened the tie around his neck. "It's my break and I don't want to have to spend another second around the people that don't want to see me, let alone me see them."  
  
"It's just one night," Hermione said as she walked behind Severus, dusting off the fuzz from his dress robe. "And if you're good, I might just come and save you from the cruel world out there."  
  
"I'd rather face Voldemort than face a dancefloor full of hormonal teenagers that think of nothing but what kind of gratitude they'll be getting from their partners when the night is over with."  
  
Hermione sighed and turned Severus around to look at her. She smiled up at him and ran her hands over the material covering his chest. He was slightly muscular there, not too much to be distasteful. Perfectly sculpted, just the way Hermione liked it.  
  
"I love you, you know that?"  
  
Severus chuckled to himself and leaned down to touch his lips softly to Hermione's. "Do you really?" he asked with a smile.  
  
Hermione nodded and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him down to kiss her more deeply. They stayed like that for several moments before a knocking at the door caused them to part.  
  
In the doorway stood Remus Lupin wearing perfectly tailored dress robes of the richest blue and a smirk on his face that was worth all the galleons in the world.  
  
"Is there any moment in time that I can walk in here and find you two not lavishing the other with affection?" he asked as he took another step in the doorway, shutting the door casually behind him.  
  
"Oh Remus, you're just jealous," Hermione said as she walked over to hug the werewolf.  
  
"You look absolutely stunning, my Dear," Remus said as he took in Hermione's appearance at arm's length. "A portrait of elegance."  
  
Hermione had the good race to blush as she said her thank you.  
  
The clock struck eight and she found herself checking the last minute details of her make-up and making sure everything was in order before walking over to Severus.  
  
"I need to dash up to the Tower before making my grand entrance in the Great Hall," she said as she kissed Severus once on the cheek and twice on the lips. "Wouldn't want anyone to know where I had to run from."  
  
Severus watched Hermione as she strolled quickly to the door, blowing him one more kiss before leaving the two other men alone in the room.  
  
"Don't say it," Severus said with a wave of his hand. He walked over to the desk and poured himself a shot of whiskey. "I already know what you're going to ask."  
  
"I'll ask it anyway," Remus said defiantly. "You and I both know that you can't keep the marriage secret for much longer. Some of the other professors are getting suspicious about the both of you, and I think it would just be easier if you let it out. When are you going to let it out in the open?"  
  
"Remus, you ask so much of me," Severus said as he re-corked the bottle of whiskey and put it back in its place. "I've carried the weight of Voldemort on my shoulders for years now, and we both know that it's safer for Hermione if only a limited amount of people know."  
  
"Voldemort's dead," Remus said. "He's not coming back anymore."  
  
"But there are still those loyal to him out there!" Severus said, slamming his hand down on the table. "I can't risk it, I just can't."  
  
"Hermione is not a bird to be caged. She needs her freedom and we both know that she won't stay kept away for long."  
  
Remus gave Severus a meaningful look at checked his watch before leaving quietly.  
  
Severus put his head in his hands and let out a long sigh. He knew that everything Remus said was true, but he didn't want to admit to it. He didn't want to risk losing the one good thing in his life. But if he tried to conceal their life together for long, he feared that he might lose her anyway.  
  
Cursing quietly to himself he stood and followed Remus out of the door and into the dungeon hallway where tonight he would surely meet his fate.  
  
~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~  
  
Hermione stood near the fire in the Gryffindor Common room with Ron and Harry as they waited for Lavender to make her way downstairs. The entire time they stood there Hermione could feel the eyes of Ron on her. If only he knew about her involvement with Severus.  
  
"Wow," Harry breathed as Lavender made her way down the stairs in an expensive looking purple set of dress robes. "You look wonderful."  
  
Lavender blushed and took Harry's offered arm as the three of them set off to the Great Hall where the ball was being held.  
  
On the way they met Lupin, who could only do his best to offer Hermione a very strange smile, and a compliment to Lavender on her robes. He was off soon after, although Hermione could have sworn that he had told her 'good luck' before leaving them.  
  
"Acting a bit strange," Harry commented thoughtfully.  
  
"Maybe he's worried about something?" Ron offered.  
  
"What has he got to fear?"  
  
"Your face," Ron laughed heartily.  
  
"Don't be a silly git," Hermione said playfully as she mockingly hit him on the arm.  
  
The rest of the walk was full of playful banter and jokes as they met up with the crowds of people on their way to the Great Hall. Once Hermione caught site of Severus and gave him a secretive smile that he was reluctant to give back in mixed company.  
  
"He seems almost happy tonight," Lavender said as she looked at their potion's master as he walked off.  
  
"I wouldn't go straight to happy," Ron said with a sneer.  
  
"Lay off," Hermione shot at them. "There's more to him than what you think."  
  
"What gives, Hermione?" Harry asked curiously. "You've never stood up for Snape before; why now?"  
  
Hermione dismissed the question as they walked into the Great Hall. It seemed that they had arrived much further behind than everyone else seeing as how many couples were dancing on the floor to a ghost band off to their right. Harry grabbed Lavender around the waist and whisked her off, leaving Hermione and Ron alone to find a place to call their safe zone.  
  
Two hours later Hermione could feel the ache in her feet from the dances that she had participated in with not only Ron but Harry and several other males from other houses in her year. She, Harry, Ron, and Lavender stood near the table of refreshments with Neville and Justin Finch-Fletchley as they watched the latest dance finish up.  
  
"It seems like the Ball is taking longer this year than ever before," Harry yawned as he glanced around the hall for any sign of the time.  
  
"You just want to get Lavender out of here," Hermione said jokingly.  
  
Harry turned several shades of crimson, stuttering his response in the negative for that comment. But none of them were buying it.  
  
"Might as well give up, Harry," Hermione aid as she sipped at her drink.  
  
A shadow loomed over the students in that little group as Albus Dumbledore walked over to them, a smile gracing his features as he held out a hand to Hermione.  
  
"Would you care to dance, Hermione?" he asked.  
  
Hermione took his hand and she gave Ron her drink. "I'd love to."  
  
Dumbledore walked Hermione out onto the dancefloor. They glided around the marble floor amidst the other couples dancing on the floor for a short time before the older wizard began to speak.  
  
"A certain Defense Against the Dark Arts professor has brought it to my attention that Severus wants to keep your marriage concealed," he said curiously. "What ever for?"  
  
Hermione looked at the couples around them to make sure no one had heard him.  
  
"He still fears what's left of Voldemort's supporters. He thinks that they're going to come and kill me," Hermione said as she rolled her eyes. "Severus is just being too overprotective. I love him to death, but it just won't do to keep the marriage a secret forever."  
  
"I quite agree," Dumbledore said with a twinkle in his eye.  
  
There was a long silence between the two as they danced to the music, enjoying themselves immensly. They daned to the end of the song and Hermione added an afterthought to the previous conversation as they made their way back to the spot where Hermione's friends were gathered.  
  
"I hate keeping this secret from my peers," Hermione said with a sigh jsut out of earshot of her friends. " Especially Ron and Harry. I want so much to tell them, but Sev won't have it. How can I change his mind?"  
  
"I believe he's way ahead of you on that one," Dumbledore said as he nodded in the direction of the Potion's Master who was standing with his arms crossed over his chest.  
  
Hermione shuddered as she looked at him standing there ten feet away from her on the dance floor, a small circle of space left around him from students that were too scared to get near. His face held the same smirk that he liked to use on her when he was in a playful mood, the same smirk he used when she knew she had been a Very. Naughty. Girl.  
  
"Hermione?" Ron asked with a tap on the shoulder. "Hermione?"  
  
But Hermione wasn't paying attention to Ron. Or Harry. Or any of her friends. All she could see was Severus standing there, beckoning her to come to him. All she could feel was his intense gaze searching through her soul. All she knew was his love.  
  
It seemed that the entire Great Hall had gone still - time had gone still - as Hermione made her way to Severus. When she reached him she touched a hand to his face. He wrapped one arm around her back and took the hand from his face, clenching it tightly in his own.  
  
"Now we dance," he whispered as they began to dance, the band playing a soft tune.  
  
The Hall had indeed gone still as they stopped to watch the couple dance freely as if they were the only two people left in the world. And to each other they were.  
  
Hermione smiled and pushed herself closer to Severus, the way she liked to stand when they embraced or were engaged in a deep, sensual kiss. Through her own clothing she could feel the heat from his body in radiating waves.  
  
There was a soft gasp from the crowd as Severus leaned down to place a kiss on Hermione's head. He looked around at the sound and only glared at those within his sight range. That was enough to shut them all up as the dance continued on.  
  
By the end of it Hermione had fully wrapped her arms around Severus's neck, holding onto him for support on the floor as she did in life. And when the music was done she looked up and saw not the stunned crowd, but the dark haunted eyes of her lover.  
  
Severus reached down and cupped Hermione's face in his hands, drawing it clsoe to him. He lrested their foreheads together and closed his eyes, breathing in her familiar scent as if he had never breathed it in before.  
  
"I love you so very much," she said in a whisper as she leaned up to capture his lips with her own in one of the deep kisses that she only saved for when they were alone, with no one else in the world to bother them.  
  
"Do you really?" Severus asked through the kiss with a grin.  
  
There was the sound of hollow footsteps and Hermione turned around to see Harry and Ron standing there with equal looks of shock on their faces. Both she and Severus did their best not to laugh, for the two boys looked like monkeys standing there with their mouths open.  
  
"How could this- I mean why is- Hermione?" Ron sputtered, his face red with anger.  
  
"It's love, Ron. Pure and simple," Hermione responded to his lack of sentence.  
  
"And how long have we not known about this?" Harry asked with a hint of amusement.  
  
"Too long," Severus said as he pulled Hermione tighter against him.  
  
Hermione looked up at Severus, searching for some meaning to his lack of self judgement.  
  
"I can't deny you the things you want," Severus said with a grin. "Sooner or later I would have to sleep on the couch."  
  
"You mean you two are-" Ron's eyes got wide and he stopped speaking.  
  
"Mr. Weasley, I would think by this stage of your life you'd be able to complete a sentence with great ease. Or perhaps you'd rather stand there and grace us with your array of facial expressions for the rest of the night?" Severus said irritably.  
  
Hermione slapped Severus lightly on the shoulder.  
  
"I need a drink," Ron said matter of factly and proceeded to leave the hall.  
  
Severus looked even more irritated by that statement, but said nothing for Hermione beat him to it.  
  
"Well, you got your wish," she said playfully. "Well, sort of."  
  
There was a slight laughter that went around the Hall before the music began playing again and the students all went back to their dancing, none really giving a second glance to the odd couple that held each other close as they swayed.  
  
  
  
  
  
a/n: sorry for the bad spelling and grammar, i really don't use betas and it's late. not really the best of endings, but i'm tired and i want to get this thing done tonight. so here it is, and i hope you enjoyed it. be sure and check out some of my other sutff as well. there's something for everyone. REVIEW!!! 


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